


Advanced Advanced Movement Studies

by ChildishGlover, Skitzer1985



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: F/M, Troy and Abed back together!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-09
Updated: 2020-07-09
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:40:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25157887
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChildishGlover/pseuds/ChildishGlover, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skitzer1985/pseuds/Skitzer1985
Summary: Troy returns from sea to find that the group has lost touch, spread out all across the country. But Troy and Abed have a plan that just might change things up.
Relationships: Annie Edison/Jeff Winger, Troy Barnes & Abed Nadir
Comments: 11
Kudos: 33





	Advanced Advanced Movement Studies

**Author's Note:**

> Big Thanks to Kian (Hare Stomp), Skitzer1985, and JeffWing (1sttimefeelings) from the Community discord! We had a lot of fun collaborating on this, hope you enjoy!

In preparation for Troy’s arrival, Abed watched every airport reunion scene he could think of. He’d imagined this day every day since Troy had left, running simulations of who would be there and how he would get there, and if Troy would even recognize him years later. 

Abed stood outside the terminal four arrival gate scanning the faces of everyone that passed by him. The most optimal simulation he had run required him to meet Troy early, since he thought it would be prudent that Troy arrived at the open arms of his best friend, instead of an empty sidewalk, left to think that no one cared for him after four years at sea. 

Abed raised his coffee to his lips and took a sip, as another rush of people exited the airport, scattering across the sidewalk. He refreshed his phone to check Troy’s flight schedule. Troy’s flight from Florida moved closer to arriving. 

Every movement, every sound was of particular interest to Abed, who was hyper-aware of everything around him. He wanted to spot Troy before Troy spotted him. He wanted to prepare himself for the best reunion scene the world had ever seen.

Abed had been working hard in the two years since he left Greendale, starting his career in an art form that had defined his life for so long: film. While he hadn’t had much success with his own work, he had a steady position as a Script Editor for Netflix, along with a small, but well-to-do apartment in downtown LA. It wasn’t much, but it was his and he was glad to have it.

Abed paced past the escalators once again, refreshing his phone to check the status of Troy’s flight. His wandering had taken ten minutes. There were only 20 minutes left to go. Abed drained the rest of his coffee, placing it in the closest trash can. 

20 minutes was still a decent amount to wait. He could spare a few minutes to check his messages. Abed found a bench that faced the arrivals exit and pulled out his phone from his jacket pocket, going over the messages of welcome that the Study Group had sent Abed for when he saw Troy.

The first one was from Annie, who was currently working a smaller job just outside DC after graduating from Quantico. It read, 

_Annie Edison - 09:39 pm - ‘Hi Abed! I'm sorry it’s been so long since we’ve last talked, I’ve been super busy at work. There’s talk of me being promoted to a high-level job in a new city! But forget me, are you excited to see Troy? It’s great that you two are seeing each other again. Tell him I say hi! Love, Annie.’_

It wasn’t easy for Annie to secure her job. Her background from Greendale was far from the school that most applicants had on their resume. But, her persistence and determination had pushed her through to stand out from the rest of the interns to be granted a great graduate job.

Jeff’s message had been a surprise to Abed. It showed warmth and familiarity towards Abed that he had never seen in the more than the 8 years they had spent as a group, or family he sometimes thought late at night. It read,

_Jeff Winger - 11:47 pm - ‘Hey Buddy, been a long time since we’ve talked. Hope you’re doing okay, are you excited to see Troy? Who am I kidding, of course you are. Tell him: Troy Barnes, you son of a bitch! You did it! Say something like that, thanks. Bye Abed, Jeff.’_

In college, they didn’t seem that close, Jeff having preferred to spend his time teaming up with Annie than with Troy or Abed. But Jeff was a complex creature and he sometimes still managed to surprise Abed.

Britta’s message was one of joy. She never really got over her crush on Troy, but she knew that it was for the best that they broke up at the Senor Kevin’s and gave them both time to grow. It read, 

_Britta Perry - 06:45 pm - ‘Hey Abed, how are you holding up? Good I hope, I’m sure you’re super excited to see Troy but please tell him that psychology may or may not have failed so I’m free to see him whenever xoxo Britta’_

Shirley’s message was one of surprise. It made out that she had been in contact while Troy was away, which wasn’t unusual. Troy had sent Abed regular postcards when he stopped in port somewhere or had access to the Internet to post on Instagram some pictures of a faraway location. Abed assumed Troy did the same for Shirley, a mother figure to Troy as much as she didn't want to be called it. It read, 

_Shirley Bennett - 07:23 pm - ‘Abed, sweetie, I’m sure you’re very thrilled to be seeing Troy again, you two had something very special. Please tell Troy I’m glad he’s safe and thank him for sending me his postcards. They were lovely. Lots of love, Shirley’_

Troy, during his time at Greendale, had become a big brother type figure to Shirley’s boys. Someone they could look up to during Shirley and Andre’s separation and subsequent divorce. 

Fifteen minutes later, Abed finished sorting through the messages. He checked the time, heart pounding. Troy would be arriving any moment now. Abed opened Troy’s flight information again, refreshing the page. 

The plane had arrived. 

Abed shot up from his seat, eyes trained on the escalator leading up from the airport exit. He could see the top of an older woman’s hair. As she rode up the escalator, Abed saw that her hand was entwined with her husband’s. They chatted eagerly about their week seeing their son in LA, who was waiting behind Abed, but Abed tuned them out to focus his attention on the small cluster of people that stood behind them. 

Abed saw the top of Troy’s head first. His hair had grown long, shaped into natural twists. Falling to his shoulders. Abed’s hands began to tremble, so he shoved them into his pockets. Slowly, as the escalator continued to rise, a long shadow, cast by the ceiling lights, began to form, slowly coalescing into a person’s shape. 

Abed’s heart pounded as more and more of Troy began to be revealed. His head, then shoulders, torso, two arms, two legs. 

Abed swallowed hard. There, standing in all his glory, was Troy Barnes, Conqueror of the Sea, Lord of the Oceans Deep. 

Troy had changed in the past two years since he left Greendale. Long gone was the baby faced man who spent all his free time watching Inspector Spacetime. Long gone was the football star who fought and almost won the college-wide game of the floor is lava. In the time Troy had gone, he had forgone shaving, and Abed could barely recognize the new man standing before him. This new, bearded man who had sailed and conquered the ocean.

But no matter the time that had passed, the man standing before him was still Troy. Abed’s Troy, all the same. His best friend. The person who understood him the most.

As Troy’s gaze met Abed’s, every simulation, every reunion movie trope, flew right out of Abed’s head. Troy dropped his luggage to the ground and raced towards Abed, wrapping his arms around him tightly and squeezing him in a warm hug. 

As they broke apart, Abed realized that without even watching one film to prepare, Troy had nailed the perfect airport reunion scene. Troy and Abed grinned at each other, eyes reflecting their time apart. They didn’t need to speak, all the memories and emotions they once shared came flooding back. 

Troy raised his hand, almost instinctively, one to his chest and one stretched outwards to Abed. Abed reflexively mirrored the movement, hands slapping together, completing their handshake.

“Even though I moved away, the Carrier Pigeon inside of you knew where to find me,” Abed said, voice tight with emotion. 

“Abed, I would always know where to find you,” Troy said. He wiped at his eyes. “I missed you, buddy.”

Abed nodded. “I..” There was a lump forming in his throat that made it difficult for him to get out the words. “I missed you too.” 

Troy retrieved his bag from where he dropped it on the pavement, and they started walking side by side to the Uber pick-up point. 

On the car ride home, Troy turned to Abed. “Where is the rest of the group? I thought they would all be here.”

Abed frowned. “We don’t really talk as a group anymore. I messaged them all to let them know you were coming home today. They all sent messages for you, but none of them could make it.”

Troy’s face fell. “Oh, I see.” 

The car fell silent, Troy staring intently out the right window, and Abed staring intently at the left, both of them watching the LA skyline blur by.

********

Troy sat on the couch in Abed’s apartment, staring blankly at the wall. How was it possible that his friends, no, his family had gone their separate ways? He looked at Abed, who was straightening his Inspector Spacetime Figurines over by the far wall. “Abed,” Troy asked. “What happened to everyone?”

Abed tilted his head, pensive. “We grew, we evolved, we became the seventh, eighth, and ninth versions of ourselves. Each year, we continued to develop, and that never stopped.” 

Troy frowned. It didn’t seem like the seventh, eighth, and ninth versions of the group were any better off. Especially if they were all spread across the country. 

Abed made his way over to the couch and took a seat next to Troy. “Annie did what Annie does best. She challenged herself and she got her dream job in DC.” 

“And Jeff?” Troy asked. 

“Jeff stayed in Greendale. He eventually passed the bar exam again and became a lawyer, but he never left. Last time I spoke to him, he was working as a junior partner somewhere on the outskirts of Denver. Taking small cases he knew he could win.” 

“And he’s happy there? Alone?” 

“Britta’s there too. She never finished her masters. She said that it was the government that put it in everyone’s minds that she needed to complete it in the first place. And that she wouldn’t be pressured by the oligarchy to complete it. So. She became the new Leonard, stuck at Greendale forever.” 

Abed paused. “Leonard passed away. I went back for the funeral. It was very Leonard. I was the only one of us to attend.” 

“Not even Shirley came?” Troy asked.

“Shirley’s busy. After her father passed away, she finally divorced Andre and set out on her own. She tried to revive Shirley's Sandwiches in Atlanta, but her business failed and now she's running a small baking job. Elijah and Jordan are in college now, and Ben is living with Andre. She's allowed to visit Ben but can only see him during holidays and special occasions." 

“No,” Troy whispered.

Troy looked down at his feet. Hearing Abed say it all aloud, he realized how lonely Shirley's life might be. Her husband had left her twice and she had lost custody of the only son she would still be able to see. 

“It’s unfortunate,” Abed said. “But in film, every falling action will come with a resolution. Let’s just hope it comes sooner than later.” 

Troy sighed. "Well, I'm gonna have tons of money soon, is there any way I could help her?" 

While most people wanted to use their money for buying fancy houses and cars, Troy had other ideas. He’d spend it all just to help his friends. 

"There's not much you can do right now, Troy. As much as Shirley needs the money, her character is too strong to accept anything without working for it." 

Troy nodded. He’d been gone for a long time, but not long enough to forget how stubborn Shirley could be. 

Troy and Abed sat in silence for a while, each lost in their own thoughts. It was a comfortable silence. The kind where neither participant needed to say anything. 

A few minutes later, Troy stood up. It was long past 11 PM, so it was probably time that they both started to head to bed. Troy looked around the apartment. There was only a single bedroom. 

"Abed, this place is a bit small, don't you think?" Troy asked.

"To be fair," Abed replied. "It _is_ only meant for one person. When Rachel comes over, which isn't that often, she doesn’t need a lot of space.”

"Yeah but now I'm moving in with you, so we might need a bit more room,” Troy said as if the subject had already been decided.

"You're gonna move in with me?" Abed asked. He had hoped so but they had never really decided for certain. 

"Abed, of course I'm moving in with you." Troy laughed. "Where else would I go? And we’re best friends always, right?"

Abed nodded. He had gotten used to living on his own over the past couple of years. He figured it would be good for his character to stop relying on his friends and try to take on the real world by himself. But as much as he wanted his character to grow, he still missed Troy more than he missed anything in his life. 

Troy understood him unlike anyone else. Their bond was strong even in the darkest of timelines, even in the years that they were apart. The idea of seeing his best friend again was one of the few things that brought Abed joy, breaking the loneliness that living in LA brought. 

And yes, he had Rachel when she was able to visit, and he had buttered noodles and Inspector Spacetime, but there was something special about his time with Troy that could not be replicated or recreated with anyone else. 

"And I was thinking," Troy mused out loud. He bounced on his toes. "Maybe, since I'm gonna have all this money now, we could buy a super big house in LA." 

“Like Full House?”

“Bigger.”

Abed's eyes widened. “Cool,” He said. “Cool, cool, cool.” 

Troy leaned over and they hit their hands together, reenacting their handshake. 

“This could be the perfect opportunity for Troy-Abed hijinx like back at Greendale. We could make a pillow fort across the entire mansion,” Abed said. 

Troy’s face lit up. “We can have two Dreamatoriums!”

“Of course, the group won’t be here to react to our antics, so it won’t be as climatic,” Abed said. “But it’ll have to do. We can have our own 6.5-out-of-10 rated spin-off.”

Troy’s eyes widened as a thought came to mind. “Wait, Abed! We could invite the group to come live with us. I could pay for everything and it would be the group back together again!” He frowned. “Besides Pierce, of course.” 

“Troy, I know you miss the group, but they’ve moved on. And so have we,” Abed said. “At Greendale, we were comforted by our meta lens. But things changed. You left. So did me and Annie. Our life isn’t a TV show. Everything can’t be magically convenient and happily ever after.”

Troy sighed. “Yeah, you’re right. I just miss the group I guess, that’s all.” 

Abed nodded. He also missed the group. Four years of texts and emails couldn’t compare to being reunited in person. 

As Abed’s Inspector Spacetime Clock chimed, indicating it was midnight, Troy yawned. Time had passed without either of them noticing how late it was getting. 

Abed offered to sleep on the couch and Troy nodded, dragging his suitcase into the single bedroom. 

Abed settled himself on the couch, pulling his blankets up to his chin. He shut his eyes and imagined all the possible scenarios in which the group was living together. Perhaps, if Abed ran the right simulation, he could find a way to make it all work. 

*********


End file.
